This study investigated surgeons' practice patterns,
experience and training in trauma care, and preferences and opinions
about caring for trauma patients. Practice pattern variables include
surgical specialty, type of surgical practice arrangement, type of
appointment with a medical school or university, membership in the
American Academy of Orthopedic Surgeons, the American College of
Surgeons, or the American Association of Neurological Surgeons, and
whether the respondents' patients paid their bills through private
insurance, Medicaid, Medicare, or an HMO. In addition, respondents were
queried about their primary hospital, including number of beds, types
of physicians employed in the trauma or emergency department, whether
the hospital was officially recognized as a trauma center, whether it had a
separate clinical trauma service with oversight and responsibility for
the care of trauma patients, whether surgical patients were covered 24
hours a day by a resident or in-house physician, and whether there was
24-hour coverage by a resident or in-house physician in the hospital's
Intensive Care Unit. To assess experience and training in trauma care,
respondents were asked how often they were inappropriately called to
evaluate and treat trauma patients, if they had taken trauma call at
any hospital during the last 12 months, how many trauma patients they
treated during the last 12 months and for what percent of them they
received compensation, whether they had taken the Advanced Trauma Life
Support (ATLS) Course in the last four years, how much they had learned
about trauma from residency training, post-residency fellowship, combat
duty in the Armed Forces, journal articles, and colleagues, how
confident they were in their ability to provide resuscitation,
diagnosis, operative care, and critical care, if they had ever been
named in a malpractice suit in a trauma case, non-trauma emergency
case, or non-emergency case in certain disease categories, and whether
this litigation made them reluctant to take on these types of cases.
Preferences and opinions on the care of trauma patients were
investigated through questions that asked respondents if they preferred to
treat adult or pediatric trauma patients, if they preferred to treat
blunt or penetrating trauma, and how taking care of trauma patients
affected their image with their peers and community. Respondents were
also queried about incentives and disincentives for treating trauma
patients, reasons for not providing trauma care, opinions on how trauma
cases compared with other emergency cases, and opinions on how various
aspects of trauma care in their community were deficient. The data also
include information on the age, gender, and geographic location (census
region) of the respondents.

This study investigated surgeons' practice patterns,
experience and training in trauma care, and preferences and opinions
about caring for trauma patients. Practice pattern variables include
surgical specialty, type of surgical practice arrangement, type of
appointment with a medical school or university, membership in the
American Academy of Orthopedic Surgeons, the American College of
Surgeons, or the American Association of Neurological Surgeons, and
whether the respondents' patients paid their bills through private
insurance, Medicaid, Medicare, or an HMO. In addition, respondents were
queried about their primary hospital, including number of beds, types
of physicians employed in the trauma or emergency department, whether
the hospital was officially recognized as a trauma center, whether it had a
separate clinical trauma service with oversight and responsibility for
the care of trauma patients, whether surgical patients were covered 24
hours a day by a resident or in-house physician, and whether there was
24-hour coverage by a resident or in-house physician in the hospital's
Intensive Care Unit. To assess experience and training in trauma care,
respondents were asked how often they were inappropriately called to
evaluate and treat trauma patients, if they had taken trauma call at
any hospital during the last 12 months, how many trauma patients they
treated during the last 12 months and for what percent of them they
received compensation, whether they had taken the Advanced Trauma Life
Support (ATLS) Course in the last four years, how much they had learned
about trauma from residency training, post-residency fellowship, combat
duty in the Armed Forces, journal articles, and colleagues, how
confident they were in their ability to provide resuscitation,
diagnosis, operative care, and critical care, if they had ever been
named in a malpractice suit in a trauma case, non-trauma emergency
case, or non-emergency case in certain disease categories, and whether
this litigation made them reluctant to take on these types of cases.
Preferences and opinions on the care of trauma patients were
investigated through questions that asked respondents if they preferred to
treat adult or pediatric trauma patients, if they preferred to treat
blunt or penetrating trauma, and how taking care of trauma patients
affected their image with their peers and community. Respondents were
also queried about incentives and disincentives for treating trauma
patients, reasons for not providing trauma care, opinions on how trauma
cases compared with other emergency cases, and opinions on how various
aspects of trauma care in their community were deficient. The data also
include information on the age, gender, and geographic location (census
region) of the respondents.

Access Notes

The public-use data files in this collection are available for access by the general public.
Access does not require affiliation with an ICPSR member institution.

Universe:
Physicians listed in the American Medical Association (AMA)
Physician Master File who reported to the AMA that they were in active,
nonfederal practice in the United States and who spent the majority of
time in a typical week as general surgeons, orthopedic surgeons, or
neurological surgeons.

Data Type(s):
survey data

Methodology

Sample:
Stratified, random sampling.

Data Source:

self-enumerated questionnaires and telephone interviews

Version(s)

Original ICPSR Release: 1995-08-16

Version History:

1998-04-28 The codebook, project report, and data collection
instrument are now available as PDF files.